Aftermath
AFTERMATH is a post-apocalyptic role-playing game set 10 months after the world is brought low by a crippling alien visitation. Stripping the world of power, the reason for the alien visit seems unclear as they disabled electrical sources, removed or killed the population of major cities, and then promptly left. 8 months later in September of 2013 and the aliens have come again... Concept / Design AFTERMATH uses the d20 Modern variant of the Dungeons & Dragons v3.5 ruleset and was created in accordance with the OGL. Though the game is set in Canada, other supporting game material suggests the incident that is occurring is global such as The Aftermath Prologue which details the journal entries of Peter Englemann from Winchester, England. The game was designed and run by Lunarwolf79 on a bi-weekly basis starting on 11th November 2012. The Event Though given no specific name, "The Event" describes what happened on an apparently global scale on Wednesday December 12th, 2012. First Contact with intelligent life from another planet was not too far removed from the myriad theories and conspiracies across the years. They appeared in ships, but were not detected until the shadows of their gargantuan vessels loomed across the surface of Mars. To this day nobody knows how they were not discovered sooner, but in light of the events that followed it has been impossible to investigate further. At 08:20 UTC on Wednesday the 12th of December 2012 the Invaders appeared to the general public, and there was nothing media or governments could do to hide it. Across the world, over major cities huge ships descended out from cloud cover not unlike something out of Independence Day. However, before there was a chance for anyone to react a wave of energy imperceptible to the Human eye erupted from all the ships networked together, acting akin to a super-powerful E.M.P. Device which instantly fried all active electrical devices. Satellites failed, planes fell from the sky, trains ran off rails, the internet collapsed. Then just as everyone was reeling from what appeared to be an attack, the ships fired huge columns of light down upon the cities, utterly encompassing them. For almost thirty seconds the beams continued, then retreated back into the ships which promptly retreated into the clouds and were gone. Alarmingly, so were all signs of life in the cities: no people, animals or even plant life could be found. It is still unclear whether they were abducted or simply killed. A world heavily dependent on electricity was plunged into a new dark age and it was not long before anarchy ensued. For more in-depth information on The Event, see The Aftermath Prologue. Aftermath Trailer Pre-Game Timeline The events leading up to the start of the game are as follows: * December 12th, 2012: The Event. Extraterrestrial civilization makes contact with Earth, sending a (presumably) planet-wide EMP burst that scrambles all operating electrical devices. North and West Vancouver Cities are engulfed in a pillar of white light, as is Vancouver City and Burnaby to the south. All life within the city limits are eradicated, and thousands die in the chaotic hours that follow. * December 23rd, 2012: Governments dissolve. With the populations of all major cities gone, local and national governments collapse due to a lack of administration. With Mayor Walton gone - presumed dead - the Lynn Valley council tries to maintain some order, but residents soon start tending to their own affairs, from home protection to food stockpiling. * February 1st, 2013: Breakdown of Communities. With no long-range communication and only meager power, law and order starts breaking down and Lynn Valley (presumably like most other communities) begins crumble as people try to revert to a time before mass technology. Most of the small Police Force stationed in Lynn Valley head to North Vancouver City leaving only three officers to contain the community. * April 10th, 2013: First organised gangs appear In fear of the return of Aliens and general survival, people start forming new groups, the best of which try to create lasting communities, but the more common gather into gangs who scavenge to survive and use force to get what they want. Lynn Valley itself remains relatively close-knit until the first few attacks by raiding scavengers attack the community. The most prominent to date was on 10th April 2013 when over 30 men and women descended on the township, and there were many casualties. * August 1st, 2013: Second Invasion Wave The 1st of August 2013 marked the first report in Lynn Valley of Alien activity, with robot-like drones descending upon the town center and raids and murders by odd reptilian-insectoid creatures in the early hours of the morning. The death-toll is massive, reaching into the thousands. The survivors go into hiding until a week passes with no further incident. * August 18th, 2013: Exodus After the collapse of government, gang raids and Alien Assaults, a town meeting is held on 18th August 2013 with the majority of survivors deciding to follow the Police Officers to North Vancouver City. Of the original 29,000+ population before the 'Event', less than 50 remain in Lynn Valley. * September 14th, 2013: The events of 1.01: Pilot It has been almost a month since Lynn Valley became a ghost town, and no raiders or Aliens have attacked in almost five weeks, but food is running scarce and the winter is setting in... List of Season 1 Episodes Listed below are the current Episodes included in Season One of Aftermath. Please click the name to go to the relevant entry. 1.01: Pilot 1.02: A New World 1.03: Regroup 1.04: Reprieve 1.05: Manta Down ('1.06: Home' coming soon) Starring The following characters are those represented by the actual players: * Daniel Cooke (Played by Illathwyn) * Dayton Gray (Played by Damo1312) * Jack Barnes (Played by Just Cheese) * Trevor Sampson (Played by Captain Booth) * Corp. Gabe Walker (Played by Barney) The Other Survivors The following list are the core NPCs (Non-Player Characters) of the Aftermath series. For specific information on any one character please click their name to go to the relevant entry. * PC Kayla Harding (Deceased) * Basil Taylor * Mackenzi 'Mack' Williams * Austin Sinclair * Aiden Foster (Deceased) * Stewart Carson (Deceased) * Hailee Goodwin * Sgt. Alexander Hill (Deceased) * Leigh-Ann Willis (Deceased) * Nayomi Willis * Ben Noble Human Forces Despite the world being brought low, the population greatly decreased, governments collapsing and long-range communication being all but eradicated; Humanity is a hard creature to kill. Across the globe pockets of Humans still cling together, fighting for survival on a planet they once called home. The game of Aftermath however, deals specifically with the groups that exist in Canada. Canadian Military / Resistance The Canadian Military was not completely obliterated during the first alien invasion (known as The Event. However in the months that followed were difficult on the already stretched forces and with no central government to lead/direct them, they were left to fight not only alien forces but desperate survivors with little or no intel to go on. For specific information on the military forces that remain in Canada and fight the re-emergence of the aliens, see The Resistance. Bandit Factions Not all survivors who banded together thought that the Event was a bad thing; many people felt that the world was far too restricted under the 'guidance' of the governments and that in some ways, the Aliens did them a favour: creating a sort of 'reboot effect' that allowed them to get back to basics. The law of 'survival of the fittest' came very much back into play and many of these small survivor groups came together for mutual protection and decided to take what they needed to survive. Termed 'Bandits' by both other survivors and The Resistance, they took what they wanted - often violently - deciding that they would fight anyone who threatened their new way of life, be they Alien or Human. For more information on the various Bandit Factions, see The Bandits. Survivors Generally comprised of small pocket communities, those who didn't fall in with The Bandits or The Resistance (or had not come into contact with either) are generally referred to as simply 'Survivors'. Most are found in rural communities away from cities or population centers where either The Aliens or Bandits attacked, and as such are holed up in defensible positions and are somewhat understandably suspicious of strangers. Survivors are the most unpredictable group to encounter as it is almost impossible to tell their true intentions when you immediately meet them: they may be helpful, indifferent or overly cautious, or downright hostile and may try to kill anyone who enters what they consider their territory. Occasionally a group of Survivors will be nomadic in nature, as is the case of the main characters in the story of Aftermath. Alien Forces An enemy virtually unknown to the Human survivors, The Alien Forces that descended upon the planet on December 12th, 2012 are organised and legion. Their true names are unknown and so too is their agenda, but it is known that they arrived in interstellar spacecraft, possess technology in advance of our own and their forces comprise of both organic and non-organic groups. For more information (as it becomes available), see The Invaders.